Coun. Stephen Karpuk (left) wrongly accused Kamloops mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson (right) of making a "fart" joke at a home builders' industry dinner.

Image Credit: CITY OF KAMLOOPS/Reid Hamer-Jackson

The mayor of Kamloops was wrongly accused by a fellow councillor of ripping a flatulence joke and embarrassing the City.

Coun. Stephen Karpuk showed his frustration at the hours-long Tuesday council meeting, admonishing Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson for allegedly making the joke at a homebuilding industry dinner last week. A spokesperson from FortisBC was speaking at the meeting about the need for natural gas.

"Great dinner. Loved it," Karpuk said. "Embarrassed at the end when the mayor asked whether we should pass more gas as a way to generate more green energy. The groans in front of 230 people were embarrassing to me."

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Karpuk quoted Hamer-Jackson at the June 27 council meeting as saying: "'Do you want me to fart more?' Really embarrassing."

Hamer-Jackson, however, said that accusation was "dead wrong," later prompting an apology from Karpuk.

"I apologize your worship for any harms that my public accusation on the offensive public joke may have caused you, your family or those who support you. I acted emotionally, instead of rationally," Karpuk said in a written statement.

Someone dealt the joke, which perhaps didn't get praise from the audience, but it came from a member of the Canadian Home Builders' Association, Karpuk said. 

Karpuk said his back was turned to Hamer-Jackson at the dinner, but others at his table told him it was the mayor. Karpuk has since acknowledged the accusation was false and said he should have spoken with Hamer-Jackson about the joke privately, rather than during a public council meeting. 

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Hamer-Jackson spoke to iNFOnews.ca briefly and said he's "tired of the drama." He's been at odds with his council since before he even took office, a reign that has had more than its fair share of drama. He said he did speak up at the dinner, but it was someone else who made the distasteful joke.

"All I said is 'it sounds like we need to eat more beef,'" Hamer-Jackson said, explaining the FortisBC energy projects that use cow manure for natural gas.

As part of the dinner, FortisBC presented attendees with initiatives to include natural gas usage in their new builds, Karpuk told iNFOnews.ca. At least in part, it included an explanation of the cow manure projects.

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